


Pastel Pink

by sweetlightsymphony



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Human, F/F, Gen, Magic-Users, Multi, firearms
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-09
Updated: 2016-05-12
Packaged: 2018-05-09 23:15:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5559440
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sweetlightsymphony/pseuds/sweetlightsymphony
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>His life carried on very innocent and peaceful, until everything stopped once he found the truth about his family. With his Mother sacrificing herself to give birth to him, Steven Universe is raised by his three, non-biological aunts whom try their best to keep most of the past a secret, for his safety; Though running into unexpected foes (fairly quickly in the story), Steven learns that he must take his Mother's place as leader of the Crystal Gems, and fight to keep Beach City safe from dangerous and threatening organizations that wish to destroy what lies in their path.<br/>(The Gems take their human appearance from the episode "Chille Tid" unless shown otherwise)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sorrowful Roses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steven struggles at trying to understand his caretakers, leaving later that night to spend it with his friend Connie.

Familiar voices began to fade into the slowly warming darkness, becoming more clear as the light began to shine through the eyelids of little Steven, causing him to cover his face with his hand and groan with discomfort. The boy rolled over in his bed, lying there for several minutes to make sure he was taking his time to stretch; The voices becoming hushed, then silenced once Steven sat up.

"Oh! Good morning, Steven! Did you sleep alright?" Pearl called from the kitchen below, sitting on one of the stools beside Amethyst, while Garnet was busy cooking pancakes and eggs. He nodded with a soft "mhmm", stretching his arms one last time before tumbling out of his bed and heading downstairs into his bathroom, popping his toothbrush into his mouth after layering the top of it with toothpaste.  After he finished cleaning himself up, He walked back into the living room and quickly changed his clothes before joining Garnet in the kitchen.

The room felt so soothing, being filled with the soft morning light of Spring. The rays danced into the little house-like living area from the screen door and windows, leaving a beautiful warmth to touch Steven's skin as well as the other's. Peace and relaxation could be read through the calmness of the morning, leaving this day to start out wonderful. There were four doors at the end of the room, opposite from the front screen door. They all have a star on them, each a different color to differentiate whose room was whose: Pearl's star is light blue, Amethyst's is purple and Garnet's is a maroon-ish red color. There's one door on the middle right that has a pink star on it, which has been told to Steven to be his mother, _Rose Quartz_ 's room. He's never been allowed inside, even the girls forbid themselves from ever entering the room. The only thing they have to remember Steven's mother by, is Steven himself, and the large portrait of her that sits above the front door. 

"Here." Garnet handed a plate to Steven, a small grin pulling at her lips. "I thought you would like this, rather than donuts for once." She set her hand on the boy's head and ruffled his hair, getting a wide smile to spread across his face "Thank you!" He hopped his way over to the empty stool, sitting beside Amethyst as she accepted her share of Garnet's cooking. "Alriiiighht! Thanks, G," She hollered before scarfing it down like it was the last bit of food in existence. Pearl on the other hand, had just finished eating a piece of toast that she had made for her self before Steven exited the bathroom. Pearl isn't much of an eater unlike Amethyst, she's very picky, on top of having the stomach of a bird. Its hard to get her to eat when we think she needs it, but she always seems to be in perfect health.

Pearl cleared her throat before crossing her arms to lean them on the counter and look over at Steven. "As it turns out, we have a job later tonight, so we'll be seeing you to the Maheswaran residence. We wont be back until morning, so they have accepted you to stay overnight, that is, if you want to."

"Oh, Okay! What job are you going to do?? Where are you going?" Steven pushed his words through a mouth full of pancake, his eyes sparking with interest and hope that they'll tell him, but unfortunately, he knew he wouldn't be able to get it out of them. 

"You know very well that we cannot tell you, due to the rules given to us in order to do these jobs, and get paid for them. Its best to not worry, we will be alright." Garnet leaned on the counter across from Steven, pulling out her small flip phone to do whatever she planned to do on it. It was always hard to tell where Garnet was looking, considering the fact that she always wears her sunglasses, even inside, Steven didn't know whether she was looking at her phone, or him.

Amethyst belched quite loudly after finishing her plate, receiving a stern glare from Pearl until she had excused herself, while Garnet had no problem taking Amethyst's plate to the sink for her after shoving her phone back into her pocket. "Yeah! Its like.. how Doctors aren't allowed to give you any details about what happened on the job." She turned her body to face Steven comfortably, wiping her mouth with her hand, then rubbing it on her jeans.

"That's different though! You know Doctors are there to help people feel better.... could you at least tell me what you are?" He began to sound more desperate, causing the girls to look at each other, then to him with soft sighs.

Garnet fixed her shades up before moving her hand forward to set it on top of Steven's, which had been rested on the counter. "You must understand, Steven, that what we do is not something that is safe to let out so easily, therefor,  until we think you are ready to handle the information we can give to you, don't stress over it too much." She held onto his hand for a moment, then let it go once Steven gave her a sigh in response. "Alright.. i wont ask again."

"Thank you." Garnet smiled softly before turning around to the stove, fixing herself a plate then cleaning everything up before she started eating.

 

* * *

 

It was quiet for most of the evening.

 

Steven had been sitting up on his bed, watching Crying Breakfast Friends while his cheeseburger backpack leaned against his bead on the floor, all ready for when he leaves later that night. There really wasn't much to do other than wait until it was time to go....

"hmmmmnn.." Steven slowly scooted off the side of his bed, and took his time to turn the Television off before grabbing ahold of his backpack and heading down the stairs.

"Where ya' going, bud?" Amethyst called from her place on the couch, stretched out on her stomach with half of her body hanging off the edge. She let loose a wide yawn, laid still for a moment, then looked over at Steven with her eyes half open, all indicating that she had been taking a nap and was disturbed by Steven's quick footsteps.

"I'm going to go ahead and meet up with Connie, There's not much to do here at the moment so I might as well head out now." He picked his phone up out of his pocket and got ready to dial his friend's cell, heading to the door with a big smile to Amethyst. "I'll see you guys later! Have fun!"

"Bye Steve-o." Amethyst waved to him, and fell off the couch with a loud 'thud' in the process. "OWAAHAHA!!" she yelled, causing Steven to giggle as he exited his home.

The sun wasn't too far from the horizon, but the colors of sunset haven't quite shown yet. It was slightly chilly, but not enough to cry over putting on your jacket. To Steven, the weather was nice, nicer than it has been ever since spring started. Stars had already begun to pour out across the sky, leaving the scene to be so beautiful that Steven Bumped into Garnet while trying to walk down the stairs and look at the sky at the same time. "Make sure you watch were you step, I don't want you having to stay home because you broke your ankle falling down the stairs." Garnet chuckled softly, patting Steven's head before walking up the last step and sliding past Steven to get to the door. "Be carful, we'll see you tomorrow."

"Hehe, okay. Bye Garnet!" He smiled, making sure he watched his feet as he walked down the stairs before taking out his phone and dialing Connie. It took a while before she actually picked up though, he had been speed walking towards The Big Donut and stood silently in front of it. Seems like Sadie and Lars already closed up. finally after his third attempt in calling her, which would have been his last 'cause he didn't really want to bother her too much if she way busy, Connie picked up.

"Hey Steven! I'm sorry, I had to finish tidying up the house." She sounded like she was out of breath, but it didn't stop her exited and bubbly tone from bursting through the receiver. "So, are you exited for movies and fun times with your dear ol' Connie?"

"Oh, that's alright. And of course! when am I never not exited to hang out with you?"

"I guess your right, but its still good to ask." She giggled softly. Steven could tell that Connie was walking through the house, hearing Mr. and Ms.Maheswarren's voices in the distance, though he couldn't make out what they were saying.

"Hehe, yeah. So.. I called to ask if you we able to come get me soon? I had nothing else to do besides watch 'Crying Breakfast Friends', so I decided to walk into town until you arrived. I'll be at my dad's car wash."

"Okay! Mom's been ready to go for the past half an hour, she was wanting to go ahead and drop us off back at the house so she could go out somewhere, and that leaves us with dad. Dad's kind of sick though, so we shouldn't ask much of him unless its urgent, which I don't think we'll bother him much.... and I thought you adored 'Crying Breakfast Friends?'"

"I've seen the episodes that were on a couple hundred times already." Steven smiled, slowly making his way to the carwash.

"Hah, of course you have. Were about to leave now, so I'll see you soon okay? Have fun with your Dad!" Connie, in all her excitement, slipped her thumb over the end button too quickly, leaving Steven to look at his phone and smile. _Man, I don't blame her. we don't get to see each other very often_ he thought.

Several minutes later, the boy arrived at his Father's car wash, seeing the back of his van open, indicating that the man was either looking at the sky, or laying back there doing whatever with his feet hanging off. He wouldn't normally sleep with the back open.

"Dad!!" Steven called out as he approached the van, his hands stuffed into his pant pockets.

He heard some type of grunt before he saw his Father sit up, quickening his pace so he could run over and greet the man with a big hug.

"Oh, Hey there Shtew-Ball! How've you been? Haven't seen you in a few days." Greg hugged on his son, then hopped out of the van. "I was just being lazy, finished a bit of guitar playing earlier. You should have came by sooner so we could have played together." He chuckled a bit, opening the back doors more before crawling back into the van. 

Steven joined him, his wide smile showing off all his young innocence. "Aw Man, I should have! I was stuck being bored for the past few hours. Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl are going out for some job thing tonight so i'm going to be spending the night with Connie." 

All in one second, the light of happiness in Greg's eyes faded and he gave Steven this concerned look, sitting with his legs crossed while leaning against the back of the passenger seat, Steven against the van wall next to his father. "Oh geez.. job thing? Did they tell you what it was?" 

"No, they said its for the better that they don't tell me anything about it until they think i'm 'ready to handle the information.' Its been brought up so many times and I always get the same lecture on how I'm not suppose to know until I'm _ready._ I mean.. is what they do.. really that bad??" Steven lowered his head, but kept his eyes on his father, seeing that he quickly became uncomfortable with the sudden change in atmosphere. "Well... uhm... you see, Steven.. What they do isn't necessarily bad, they just.. there's restrictions. They probably fear that you'd change the way you think about them if-"

"YOU know about it too?? Why do they trust you more than me? I can handle it! I'll still love them no matter what they do.. even if they were working for some evil guy who wants to blow up the galaxy." Steven lifted his head back up, huffing and pouting at Greg.

"Well you see Steven, I knew about this even before I met your Mother so I have a good excuse. Trust me little man, you've got to have patience or else it'll be ripping you apart until you eventually find out, and you'll be stuck with the stress a while after." Greg set his hand on Steven's shoulder for comfort, then quickly pulled the boy up into a big, cuddly embrace. "Do you know how lonely I was without you for THREE WHOLE DAYS? Come here and give your old man a REAL hug!!"

Steven began to burst into laughter, returning the great affection with strong, bear hugs. "Hahaha!! You're the greatest." He giggled though his big smile, squeezing his father one last time before letting go of him and setting back into his seat, then braced himself to get his hair ruffled up.

 

Steven and Greg spent the last ten minutes talking and bonding before Connie and her Mother showed up, Connie rolling down her window so she could yell to her jam buddy. "Hi Steven! Hi Mr. Universe!"

The Father-Son bonding thing kind of brightened up the mood for Steven. He decided that he would try to brush off the thought of his caretakers, wanting to have a nice and calm night with Connie; No crying or sulking about it until he goes home the next morning.


	2. Too Soon?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Unexpected Guests give the kids an unexpected surprise.

 

"Steeeeeeeven.. psst.. wake up!" 

 

Soft groans fill the young boy's throat as he stretches, almost not being able to peel his eyes open. Even without his tired vision, he was able to make out his best friend in the darkness of the living room, him being on the couch. Or.. halfway on the couch.

 

"euhh.. Connie? ..why aren't you asleep?" Steven asks while sitting up, coughing to get the tired rumble of his throat cleared out. "What time is it?" 

 

"Two thirty. I'm sorry for waking you up, its just that i heard people outside the house and i had to come check on you. Mom went to work right as she came back several hours ago, and dad's still in bed." Connie patted her thighs, shifting her weight occasionally to swing the skirt of her nightgown. "I know it doesn't seem too much to be worried about, but i haven't been able to sleep for a while anyway." 

 

Steven let out another soft groan, trying to wake himself up so he could talk properly; staring at Connie for a few moments before shifting over and making room for her to take a seat next to him on the couch. "Hey, its alright, i bet its nothing. People walk around at night all the time." He set his hand on her shoulder as he spoke, then took it away to stretch again.

 

Connie seemed very uneasy, scooting close to Steven for comfort. "Yes i know, but they've been... _lingering_.....around the houses... i watched them from my window for a few minutes, and they seem to be searching in people's yards for something." She huffed, looking over to the front door. 

 

There was a huge waft of silence.

 

Steven kept his eyes on Connie, and the door, reaching his hand down to take hers. "Its gonna be okay, you should go back to bed, unless you want me to go with you and sleep on the floor?" He smiled, trying the best he could to comfort her.

 

She looked back to him from the door, returning the smile with her own. "Thank you, but i don't want you to hurt your back or anything." She waved her free hand at him, another gesture meaning 'You don't have to.' "I'm good to go back up on my own." 

 

Before Steven could protest with something about how he's slept on the floor plenty times, there was a loud 'THUMP' coming from the back door, alarming the two smol children; Connie gripping onto Steven's shirt after letting out a yelp while the both of them face the kitchen. _"What was that!??"_   

 

"I don't know. But to be safe, i think we should go up to your room.." Steven said quickly, holding onto Connie's arm as he looked back at her. She agreed even before Steven finished his sentence, already up on her feet and pulling on him. Steven hopped up and quickly ran up the stairs while pulling Connie along with him, wondering if they should go alert her Father, who seemed to still be asleep in his room. He honestly didn't want to bother Mr. Maheswaran until he was sure that these women Connie saw were breaking into the house. All of this fuss could be over some thing small, like a stray dog or cat messing around outside; But the two weren't entirely sure.

 

The noises couldn't be Connie's mother, because if it was, they would have heard the car pull into the garage first. 

 

They rushed to close and lock the door, then hurried to the window, seeing no one. The street was as bare as every night beside the occasional car that would drive by, showing that some people sure like to stay up late unless their going to or leaving work of course.

 

Connie began pacing around the room while Steven took a seat on the side of her bed, the both of them pondering what to do. "Do you think we should go investigate?" Steven suggested, receiving a look from his friend that said ' _are you crazy?'_ "Well i mean.. we could.. but you never know if these people are really strong.. have weapons.. etcetera, etcetera! We should really just wait, and if anything else happens like if-!!" And on cue, the both of them stopped, Connie covering her mouth to the sound of several footsteps coming from downstairs, along with soft sounds of things hitting the walls and objects in the living room. 

 

"We need to be smart... in a real situation, kids like us can get seriously injured if the burglars intend to harm, and we can never be sure until its too late. We should really just go wake up my dad.." She said softly, trying to make sure she remains calm.

 

Though Connie was freaked out of her mind, Steven seemed to be more calm than her, not really knowing what to expect from any of this; pondering over a few suggestions, executing some, then thinking over more. "We should have something to protect us while we go to your dad.." He looked around the room, not seeing much that seemed to be useful, or anything that of wasn't much value so it wouldn't be all that bad if it broke over someones head.

 

"I don't have anything in here worth using. We're just going to need to break for dad's room as fast as we can."

 

Agreeing, Steven hopped up from the bed and creeped over to the door, getting ready to open it when they were ready.

 

"On Three then.." Connie started, leaning on the wall next to the door.

 

The entire house was seemingly quiet, nothing from downstairs besides the occasional creek from the floor. The silence was eerie, the darkness of the room aside the moonlight wasn't helping.

 

"One,"

 

Steven tightened his grip on the doorknob, his hands becoming sweaty from his nervousness. Connie on the other hand, was marking the wall with how hard she was gripping at it for the same reason.

 

"Two,"

 

The kids heartbeats were racing, and they both could hear them. They didn't seem to be ready, but with the determination in their eyes, it was almost like they could kill if they had too.

 

"Three."

 

In an instant, the door flew open with a loud creek. They would have taken off, but they stopped in their tracks as they looked up on what greeted them; A tall, unfamiliar female figure which spoke in a low and raspy tone. "There you are, Quartz."

 

The kids screamed, quickly pushing onto the door in attempt to close it back into place. They pushed with all the strength their little bodies could produce, but it wasn't enough to keep the woman out. She grunted, and yelled as she shoved the door back open, trying to recover from her fingers slamming in between it and the frame.

 

Steven was pushed up against the wall behind the door, letting out sounds of discomfort from the small space and how the bottom of the door grazed over his feet, lightly skinning them. Connie on the other hand, scrambled away in attempt to find something worth breaking, locating her bedside lamp and not thinking before chucking it in the woman's direction.

 

The woman flinched as she was hit by the lamp on the side of her head, recovering quickly and closing the door a bit so she could grab Steven and drag him out by his pajama shirt "Get over here, BRAT!! You're coming with us whether you like it or not, so theres no use in fighting back!!!" She growled, eventually restraining Steven by his hair and shoving a rag over his face, trying ignore the clawing and hitting he was doing to her.

 

Steven yelled behind the rag, biting the woman's hand as hard as he could. No matter if he knew he was already not going to win this, he was going to try anyway, for Connie's sake. 

 

The woman made a sound of pain low in her throat, keeping it down as she tried to keep Steven still until he was put under. "You little- just GO OUT ALREADY!!" She grunted, looking up at Connie when she noticed her arm was being hit. "Grhh.. I DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!" She growled, removing the rag from the half-awake boy's face. He was slowly going under, but it wasn't quick enough; So she kept her hold on his hair, then hit the side of his head against the wall. Hopefully not hard enough to hurt him too seriously. 

 

That did the trick, it worked with Connie as well. A little blood never hurt anyone, especially when its the effect of you being knocked out and dragged away while bound by your wrists with a bag over your head.

 

Steven had begun to stir lightly, he was scared and confused, but mostly asleep and in immense amount of pain from how hard he hit the wall. He wasn't sure what was going to happen to him and Connie, not knowing why they were taken in the first place.. And why they were stuffed in the trunk of some car. This reminded Steven of a movie he saw his father watching when he was little, a bunch of men in suits having a gunfight.. and there was some guy they kidnapped and put him in the trunk.. then they tied him to a chair with this one single light above him in this building.. asked questions and what not. He thought that this would be something related to that.. if not at least something like that. 

 

He wouldn't be sure until they arrived to wherever they were being taken to.. he has no clue on how long its been sense they've left the house. _Hopefully Connie's parents notice soon and call the cops.. Garnet.. Amethyst.. Pearl..._

 

_wait_

 

  
_..._   _Oh no.. Please don't tell me this has to do with them.. please.._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> okay so maybe this chapter took a darker turn than I expected, its whatever, things will of course get solved sooner or later. The woman, (which it is very obvious to be Jasper, said friends I had preview this) apparently didn't use enough chloroform, so she had to do /something/. don't hurt me for having her do that to the poor babies.


	3. Small Opportunity

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Basically, the cheesy 'Kidnap the kid to bait in the real deal' thing.

It seemed as if he had fallen asleep again, not remembering anything about the car stopping and being pulled out of the trunk. He could hear the hushed voices of people who seemed to have surrounded him, being carried over someone's shoulder, which he guessed to be the woman who kidnapped him in the first place. With how the voices echoed, he assumed they were in a metal building of some sort; Possibly one of those huge storage houses.

 

The voices were too quiet to make out what anyone was saying, other than when the woman who would occasionally stop and exchange a few short words, though Steven had no interest in paying attention. 

 

He groaned, the pain in the side of his head pulsing, making the splitting headache he already had much worse. He started to move around slightly, breathing becoming a difficult task not to mention he's being held halfway upside-down. Steven then regretted his attempts to move, the woman's grip on his legs becoming harder so she could restrain him better.

 

More pained groans escaped the boy's throat, then coughs to occasional choking. He began to whine as well, tears escaping from behind his tightly closed eyes. He held his hands together, which were tied behind his back, and wished whatever he was bout to go through, would end quickly. He just wants to go home..... 

 

The voices had become distant, then became quiet after the woman had stopped walking. She took a moment before shifting Steven and setting him down on the ground, leaning him up against some cold wall to keep him sitting up. All too suddenly, the bag was removed from Steven's head, the light hurting his eyes so he forced his head down and kept his eyes closed with more sounds of discomfort.

 

"Rise and shine." The woman chuckled as she straightened her posture, crossing her arms over her chest while looking down at the boy. Steven groaned as he eventually got his eyes to adjust to the light coming from several huge lamp things at each end of the room, Looking up at the woman with his eyes half-lidded. He noticed she was wearing a full face, orange mask; surprisingly, though her speaking sounded clear. Her long white hair was matted like she hadn't used conditioner in months, trailing down to her lower back and over her chest. She was wearing a white tank top and some light orange jacket with torn jeans, Looking as if she was tearing them more when she kneeled down to level with Steven; however, she was still towering over him. She was quite intimidating.. considering she was more ripped than Steven has ever seen anyone be. 

 

The group of people he had been hearing were all at a distance, but kept their eyes on him from wherever they stood unless they were talking to someone. Two of the people walked up behind the woman to accompany her, looking like they were ready to kill someone. He was sure that they were.

 

"Listen, you little runt. Our intentions aren't to hurt you, but we can if you decide not to comply. Now, being the son of Rose Quartz, were expecting a party of three to give us a little visit. Until then, why don't you spew out things regarding your personal identification, along with the three you live with? Remember what i said about not complying." She set her hand on Steven's head, forcing him to look upwards by pulling on it.

 

A grunt and slight whining was Steven's response to the sudden movement, glancing over at the two ladies before looking the woman in her eyes from behind the mask, which held a very detailed orange gemstone in the middle where her nose should be. "S...Steven ... Quartz Universe... what do you have against my family!?" He huffed, giving her a look of fear and confusion. "Where's... Where's Connie!???" He said desperately, not daring to move his head in fear of it being yanked back into place. It hurt enough as it is.

 

The woman growled after hearing his name, turning to one of the ladies that were standing behind her and mumbling something incoherent into her ear after she had kneeled down. After the whispering had ended, they looked at each other for a moment, then the lady walked off without another word. "You'll be better off not knowing our full intentions.. I'm guessing Connie is the one we dragged in with you, She'll be fine, as long as she behaves of course." She stared at Steven for quite sometime.. what is this woman and long pauses? Steven shivered a little bit at how she was staring at him... scary.

 

"...Please don't hurt them... Don't hurt anyone.. I don't care what you do to me, just please.." He begged, Eventually giving up in trying to move around. He was tired, sore, and the grip on his head wasn't helping his growing headache/soon to be migraine.

 

"Don't waste your breath, kid. It'll be a while before they even notice you're gone." She huffed, then quickly looked up as she heard her name being called by a loud, rusty voice, removing her hand from its place on Steven.

 

" ** _JASPER!!_** " A seemingly small woman approached the two, though Steven needed to look twice because he thought she was an actual kid by her looks. She seemed impatient, tapping her foot with her arms crossed over her chest with a bottle in hand. "You didn't even bother to use enough chloroform, He would still be out if you have done so back at the house! Good thing i was smart enough to keep some and use it on the girl, unlike YOU!" She growled, shoving the bottle to Jasper. "You're insane for doing what you did, dragging me, and the rest of Homeworld into this! Diamond should have your head for such an idiotic, and dangerous move!! Just because you saw a small opportunity, does  _NOT_ mean you should have taken it!!!! You could at least have told me that's what we were doing out there!!"

 

"Trust me, Peridot, i know what I'm doing." Jasper hissed, snatching the bottle and taking a swig out of it after pulling the cap off and sliding her mask up only enough to show her mouth. Steven thought she was crazy, but it apparently wasn't chloroform like he thought it was. 

 

"OBVIOUSLY  _NOT!!_   Do you understand that if the Crystals come to take back the kids, They'll destroy the base as well!?? There is a reason why we don't go after them in the first place, by Diamond's order!!! If she finds out that Rose Quartz's pathetic excuse for a son has been kidnapped by us, she'll kill you  _herself_ if the Crystals don't do it for her!!! .....  **** _ **ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME?????**_ **** _"_ Peridot stomped her foot and clenched her fists, keeping them at her sides. She was boiling with rage, keeping her death glare on the brute who was just sitting there, taking one last drink from the bottle before setting it down next to her. Jasper eventually took the mask off, sliding it up to rest it over her head.. She was sill staring at Steven, her dark brown eyes making his stomach feel queasy. The 'Pathetic excuse for a son' made Steven frown and huff.

 

"Yes, there's no way in hell that I wouldn't be able to." Jasper growled, Standing and setting her hand on Peridot's head, ruffling her hair violently and receiving a yell of disapproval. "Do you really think I went out there, blind with no backup plan, and took him and his little friend while not expecting the consequences? I'm not the only one in on this, at least one quarter of Homeworld knows about this. Why do you think there's more of us awake at Four in the morning? I didn't tell you about it while we were out there 'cause i knew you'd freak out and ruin everything." 

 

Peridot pulled away from Jasper's hand, growling as she fixed her hair. "...What are you doing exactly?? If you're going completely against Yellow Diamond's word, i'll have you know-" "YOU'VE GOT A LOT OF GODDAMN NERVE ACCUSING ME OF BETRAYING MY LEADER!!  _SHUT YOUR FUCKING MOUTH AND KEEP YOUR DISTANCE OR I'LL GIVE YOU A REAL REASON TO THINK LIKE THAT!!"_  Jasper interrupted, towering over Peridot as she yelled. Both Peridot and Steven flinched, yelling was never a thing Steven was fond of, it always made him emotional and possibly cause him to start crying if it was bad enough; Even if it wasn't towards him.

 

Steven also had tried his best not to listen to the curse words, remembering how Pearl would lecture him on cursing and how unnecessary it was. Long story short, Cursing is for angry adults who don't know enough words to speak their language correctly. Amethyst had called her harsh, considering she's not as fluent in English than she is Spanish.

 

There was a long and silent pause throughout the metal warehouse, Peridot shrinking under the brute's dark glare. She cleared her throat, being the first one to notice everyone was staring at the two. "Y-yes ma'am.." She said softly, reaching for the bottle that sat on the ground, and walking away quickly towards one of the doors that look like it belongs on a small, middle class home's garage. after closing the door behind her, everyone's looks began to wander away while Jasper turned back to Steven, who had seemed just as hurt Peridot was before she left. He can admit, he felt very sorry for her.

Jasper took a deep breath while keeping her eyes on the boy, again doing the creepy pause thing. "What do you plan on doing with us?" Steven asked softly, making sure his gaze back on Jasper was confident, as if he wasn't scared... which was kind of a small lie.  


 

"No more questions from you."

There was no hesitation in the pain that suddenly struck the side of Steven's head, causing him to fall over on his side. A wail was all the poor boy was able to manage besides small coughs and chokes that came out with it, struggling against the ground with the worst migraine he's ever experienced; Getting kicked in the head was bad enough as it is.

More groans and cries continued to slip past his lips, tears forming rapidly through his tightly closed eyelids and hitting the cold stone floor. There was nothing to look at, no one to talk to, there was only darkness and crying.  


Then the crying stopped, it was silent. Steven had blacked out once again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I honestly didn't know how to end this Chapter... didn't have the right motivation to make it any different, so enjoy it as it is until the next chapter. thanks for reading the gross talent that I do not have, anyway <3


	4. Panic

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The girls and Greg find out the kids are missing, as well a little peek on how Connie is doing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Before you begin reading this chapter i got a little important thingy i wish for you to read. Now, back in chapter 1 i had the temple be the same as in cannon with the Fusion woman thing of stone holding this little house that eventually lead to inside of the hill with several doors belonging to the rooms of everyone that lives there, including Rose's, but those doors are separate and along the back wall of the house. I'm wishing to change that due to having better ideas for the interior design of the temple. (this is because i'm trying to keep my story as close to cannon as possible when it comes to certain things.) So, back in chapter 1 i'm going to delete the description of the doors. I'm going to be talking about them in this chapter anyway so i don't need to worry about adding in the changes in chapter 1. sorry for making this so complicated, this is my first story i've ever gone through with continuing and sharing with people so please spare me of your judgement, and thank you for your love and support for my story! <3 (my punctuation and grammar aren't too great, and i don't have anyone to proof read my work, so please if you see any mistakes, message me!)

Clouds covered the brightness of the moon, leaving this small part of earth in the dark for the remaining one hour until sunrise. At this time, the three women known as Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl were all hurrying through Beach City towards the Temple with a small handbag held upon Garnet's shoulder; They were all wearing some casual attire such as jeans and jackets.

"FUCK!! Are they even following us anymore???" Amethyst wheezed, having a little bit of trouble in keeping up with the other two. "We could at least slow down in curtesy to the one whose legs are several feet shorter than the goddamn towers that make up your's!!!" She spoke quickly, already stumbling behind. Garnet and Pearl both slowed down and stopped, looking back at Amethyst who had completely hunched over with her hands on her knees to keep her from falling over. "haaauuumygod, huuuu.... gimme a sec.."

"I suppose we can take a small break, i don't believe to see or hear any of them anymore." Pearl huffed out, not admitting to how much she wished to stop running as well.

Garnet took a deep breath as she took a few steps away from the other two, pulling the bag off her shoulder and holding the straps at the base "Yes, were good for now." "We're always good 'for now'," Amethyst coughed through her huffs and puffs of trying to calm her breathing. "We're always out there ready to break our neck's by fighting weird assholes for rocks."

Pearl snorted "Language, Amethyst."

"Oh, me? and here I thought I wasn't the one who curses the most!"

"I don't curse!!"

"I can't count how many times I've heard you say 'Fuck' tonight, Pierogi."

"Thats probably because you can't count any higher than five in english."

"GEMS!" Garnet yelled, shutting up the two before they could go at it anymore. "We need to head back to the Temple before sunrise, now lets get a move on." She then turned and began walking again with the bag in a tight grip, Amethyst and Pearl following close behind her while growling playfully at each other in hushed voices.

The front door to the Temple had opened and welcomed in the three women as sunrise began to pour across the sky in lovely shades of orange and pink, scattering over clouds and pushing away the stars in a matter of minutes.

Amethyst and Garnet had already began walking to the one door at the other end of the room, leaving Pearl to lounge out on the couch. "I'm going back to sleep, and i expect to see a Steven when i come back up here." Amethyst grinned as she opened the door and waved to Pearl. The staircase lead off in three directions, up, down, and a hall that ran straight ahead; Garnet pushed past Amethyst and began to head downstairs with the small purse in hand, and Amethyst ended up following behind her after closing the door back into its frame, leaving Pearl in the rays of sun that shown through the windows and front door. It would be several hours until it was time to go pick Steven up from Connie's, and with how hard it normally was to go back to sleep, Pearl stayed up and tended to certain chores as well had a small and early breakfast.

She sighed as she set her mug of tea on the bar of the kitchen, sitting in one of the stools while looking down at her hands on the counter. It bothered her, the keeping their 'job' a secret from Steven thing, it just didn't settle right in her mind, but it was for the best. Hell, if Steven found out they hunt down former gems and kill them for their magical possessions, he'd surely see his caretakers differently. How differently? this question was brought up several times wether it was in Pearl's head, or it was when she would talk to Amethyst and Garnet about it. We've been letting information slip without thought.... Steven already knows so much..

It wasn't for sure on how Steven would react, and it scared Pearl. She ran her fingers through her hair, moving her head down so she could keep her arm on the table as she did so. The 'If only Rose were here' line came to her head for the thousandth time this week, causing her to grind her teeth together. Get it together, Pearl, its not the end of the world.

Then the loud bleating sounds of two high pitched notes rang from the phone which was perched on the wall, causing Pearl to jump and scream "oHMYGOD!!" before almost falling off the stool. She took several deep breaths to calm herself before standing and taking the phone off the wall, taking a moment before setting it to her ear. "Uhm- Hello?" She sneaked a peak at her lock screen from her phone that she slid out of her pocket. Isn't it too early to be calling people at 8:00 in the morning??

"Hello?" It was Dr. Maheswaran

Pearl held the phone with both of her hands as she leaned against the wall. "Yes? this is Pearl Fera."

"I do apologize for the early call, but I was needing to see if you had picked Steven up early and taken Connie with you? Neither of them are here and Connie hasn't left a note, I wasn't called about any early pick ups either." She sounded a little annoyed. "I had asked my husband about it but it seems that he's too sleep deprived to give me any clear answer."

"..Wha? No we hadn't picked either of them up, We just came home from work about hour ago and weren't going to pick Steven up until noon."

"Well, neither of them are here, they aren't even outside anywhere close to the house! Not in the backyard, Nothing! And i cant file any missing children reports until they've been missing for at least 42 hours!" Dr. Maheswaran began to sound more worried, going into the 'expecting the worst' mother mode. "Doctor, please, I'm sure its nothing. They may have taken a small walk and didn't think you'd get back before them. Steven sometimes leaves the house without telling anyone, though i continue to tell him not to. Have you tried calling them on their cellphones?"

"Yes! they left both of their phones here, and Steven left his things overall. I need you three and Mr.Universe to come over immediately, Connie wouldn't just leave like this without any notes or texts that shes leaving.. I'm worried for the both of them." Dr. Maheswaran sighed, and took a few moments of silence. "Her room is an absolute mess and her lamp is broken, theres scratch marks on the wall next to the door as well on the door, and clothes were thrown from her closet, some still on their hangers. Expect the cops to be here before you arrive." "Don't call the cops yet, we'll be there shortly." and with that, Pearl hung up the phone back to its place on the wall without an explanation.

She stood there a moment, taking her time to think about what had happened to them. "..Left their things... Steven takes his phone wherever he goes, and.. why would they trash Connie's room..? this is unnatural. ..Unless...."

"GARNET!! AMETHYST!!!" Pearl dashed for the back door and swung it open, not bothering to close it behind her as she bolted downstairs as fast as her legs would let her without falling down. She bolted down a long corridor filled with metal doors on each side, as if she was running through an asylum, stumbling her way to a door somewhat in the middle of the hallway on the left side. It had a large purple star on it labeled 'Amethyst Browallia' along with several small band posters on it. Pearl beat her fists against the door as she yelled for Amethyst, then ran further down to another door on the right side, yelling for Garnet on another door which held a dark red star labeled 'Garnet Kuruvinda'. "We need to get to the Maheswaran residence NOW!! Steven and Connie are missing and they could be DEAD!! After our reckless scandal last night, they might have been KIDNAPPED!! IF ITS WHAT I THINK IT IS THEN WE NEED TO GO NOW!! WE NEED TO FIND THEM BEFORE HOMEWORLD DECIDES TO KILL THEM!! HOMEWORLD IS THE ONLY THING THAT EXPLAINS THIS!!! IF ROSE WERE HERE, HOMEWORLD WOULD HAVE NEVER GOTTEN THE CHANCE!!!! IF ROSE WERE HERE-!!!"

Pearl was going absolutely crazy on top of slipping out of character, beginning to burst into tears while leaning on Garnet's door which has yet to be opened. Amethyst on the other hand had already bursted out of her room, trying to get Pearl away from the door so she could try and calm her down. "W-Wait a second P!! Shut your trap and come here!!!" She eventually was able to yank Pearl from the door, making her sit so Amethyst could hug her properly without making Pearl do any awkward crouching; Pearl immediately responded by hugging back and crying softly into Amethyst's shoulder, still mumbling over nonsense. Not too long after Pearl had tried calming down, Garnet had opened her door and stepped out, shutting it behind her again. "I was working on the gemstone from this morning in my basement and I heard noise, what happened? Pearl?" Garnet crouched next to the two who were basically cuddling in the middle of the hallway, Amethyst looked up and took a deep breath "She told me Dr. Maheswaran called, and that Steven and Connie were kidnapped by Homeworld cause the house was a mess and they're nowhere to be found. Pearl keeps talking about Rose, and that were damned because we failed her.."

Amethyst looked very heartbroken, holding tightly onto Pearl who had been breaking down as if the world was ending right before her eyes. Garnet frowned and set her hand on Pearl's back, removing her shades which shown her brown and blue eyes. "Pearl, we need you to calm down so we can go and investigate. We'll get them back, I promise."

Pearl removed her face from Amethyst's shoulder so she could look at Garnet, wiping her eyes with her hand with a nod "O-of course.. I'll go get cleaned up and changed."

Amethyst snickered "Same, i got gross Pearl shit all over my tank." Pearl ruffled the smaller girl's hair violently with a soft grin, then got up and headed back upstairs with a small wave to the two. After Pearl was gone, both Garnet and Amethyst looked at each other with concern "What do you think'll happen? I mean, with homeworld and junk. Would they really... Kill them?" Amethyst stood and pushed some hair behind her ear.

"No clue."

"Weren't you a Homeworld gem at some point, though?"

"I was born into Homeworld, however, I joined the rebellion with my mothers at an early age." Garnet paused as she was about to enter her room. "So no, I have no clue on what they could do to Connie and Steven, and i'm terrified at the possibilities. We also aren't sure if it was Homeworld, but its human nature to assume the worst." Then she entered her room and closed the door behind her.

Amethyst stood there for a moment, staring at Garnet's door before slowly making her way back down the corridor to her room so she can change. She clenched her fists tightly after closing her door behind her, gritting her teeth together with an unknown anger. "I'll kick their asses, damned Homeworld Gems better not touch my kid."

 

* * *

 

...

where.. am I?

...Steven?...

..I'm cold..

I.. cant move...

The soft cries of a little girl echoed through what seemed to be a small room of concrete and metal, the occasional sound of chains clinking together interrupted whatever silence would last while the girl would take breaths between whining from exhaustion and pain.

She struggled none, her hands bound together above her by rope and chains quite some distance from the ground, causing her to keep a standing position. Her ankles were shackled together, and her eyes were blindfolded. She felt as if she was in a dungeon somewhere in the medieval age, not helping the panic that rose in her chest as she began to fully regain consciousness. Her head pounded and threatened to pull her through hell if she made any attempts at yelling, silencing some of the poor child's words as she tried to speak; she felt she needed to say something, anything to get anyone's attention if there was anyone around at all.

"..Steven!!" She whimpered, tears beginning to roll down her cheeks as well dampen the blindfold. "I-I'm scared... someone.. please.."

"Shut up."

Connie complied, but only for a few moments as she shifted her feet under her. It was the voice of a middle-aged woman, soft, yet stern, sounding like it came from beside her, but not in the same room. "...Who.. Who's there?" She spoke gently, still trying to make sure her brain doesn't spontaneously combust from the massive migraine she tried to hold down.

"I said shut up! they'll cut your tongue out if you keep yelping like a dog."

Connie felt a little insulted, but she went ahead and kept quiet. the least she could do was attempt in calming the pain throbbing through her entire body. Being quiet for almost thirty minutes, Connie had little luck with dimming the throbbing, so now she was able to speak a little clearer. questions begged to pour from her lips like a fountain, but she was careful, and started off small. "..Who are you?"

"None of your concern." The woman was sudden with her reply, as if she was waiting for Connie to ask.

"Surely you can help me... at least... i-inform me of where i am?"

"The end of the line. With being the shape you're in after seeing you dragged into your cell, they're planing to kill you after they use you." The woman had an amused tone to her voice at first, but then it became depressing. "Listen kid, If you're smart, you'll shut your mouth before they hear us and worsen both of our conditions. The last thing i want is another broken rib.."

"Hm.." Connie sighed and shifted the position her arms were in above her, starting to get sore and really uncomfortable, including with the shackles clamped to her ankles.

"...Its.. Lapis, by the way. Lapis Lazuli."

Connie smiled lightly, then immediately dropped it with a sour expression as she began to feel the rope on her wrists begin to burn her and rub her skin raw. "Connie Maheswaran, Its a pleasure." she grunted, trying to adjust herself in any way that isn't uncomfortable, but of course, this task was impossible. She could admit she was terrified, aside from the possible acquaintance she made, she didn't want to know what could possibly happen to her, or why they decided to tie her up like this. Shes a small kid, its not like she'd be able to inflict any real damage on anyone, but of course, they probably had to be sure.

She jumped when she heard the loud creaking of a heavy door quite some ways away, feeling she was unable to relax from any fear or pain, so her blind paranoia and cold surroundings made her a bit jumpy. Connie began to whine softly, keeping as still as she could possibly be as the creaking door came to a close, and two pairs of heavy footsteps followed, leading to her direction. The voices of two masculine woman broke through the once silent dungeon-like thing, talking about some shit Connie could possibly care less about..... and what is it with there always being beefy women around here? where dem boys at.

"-...basically doesn't exist to the government, so the only thing we know about him is that he's the son of Rose Quartz, leader of the Rebels, the Crystal Gems. We've gotten hint that they're base is somewhere along the coast; Rose Quartz has yet to be seen."

"Understood... What number is the Quartz boy in?"

"24, ma'am"

"Good, and the girl that came with him?"

"23, ma'am."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ayyy i apologize for taking about 4-5 months to update, i've been doing school work and sleeping. When i did get around to continue writing, i'd drift off after doing a little bit and eventually not wanting to continue. bUT HERE IT IS! i have a bit that i wrote for this chapter, but i decided it'll be for chapter 5 or else chapter 4 will continue for another month or so, ahaa.


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